This stage uses the GR® Tour du Mont-Blanc, the section is a balcony trail facing the Aiguilles de Chamonix peaks and Mt Blanc itself, until the Montets pass. Then after heading down to the Buet hamlet, it climbs to the Posettes pass and then the Balme pass to reach Switzerland. After the pass, it continues on the right side of the valley down to Trient, the stage destination.

Start off again in a northward direction, after several bends ignoring the first trail that descends on the right, and then at an intersection that which climbs up to the left towards the Lac Blanc (White Lake) (alternative route). This is where the “Grand balcon sud” (Great Southern Balcony) trail starts, leading to the Chéserys chalet (1,998m). The Tour de Mont Blanc trail continues in a north-easterly direction, climbing up to reach the “La tête aux Vents” trail junction (2,132 m) – Take care! Vertigo sufferers are advised to take the trail off the GR® which starts just in front and arrives at the Montets pass. In this case, the walk to Tré-le-Champ requires a major detour. Otherwise, plunge downwards to the right, passing over narrow terraces and a vast chimney (a rather exposed route, but perfectly kitted out with ladders and hand grips), skirt the Aiguille d’Argentière (climbing rock), and cross a sparse wood. The trail then arrives in the village of Tré-le-Champ (1,417m) - Junction with the Tour de Mont Blanc trail and the Vallorcine alternative. Take the route from the Montets pass, ignoring the Posettes alternative route on the right at the car park, then leave this path and cut across on the “botanical trail” to arrive at the Montets pass (1,461m) – Visitor centre of the Aiguilles Rouges reserve. From the visitor centre, take the parallel trail to the route for 300m, cross it and continue on the gently sloping track leading to the village of Le Buet (1,343m). Pass the station, 100m from where the trails cross, turn right and at the first intersection head directly uphill or follow the curving route on the same level until the next crossing, where the trail turns sharply to the right and rejoins the little path on which the direct ascent can be made. From there, the trail climbs steadily until it crosses a track arriving from Saix Blancs (1,832m). Follow this track to arrive at the Posettes pass (1,997m). Follow the trail to the east running perpendicularly to a ski lift, ignore the trail that descends towards the lift station and turn towards the left, at another fork in the road remaining on the higher trail that runs more or less parallel to the Télésiège de la Reine chair lift until reaching its terminal, where the trail continues on the right to arrive at the Balme pass (2,191m) – Hut – Franco-Swiss border (Signposting in red-white-red as far as Le Peuty) (Gilbert Blatter, Codérando 74)

From the Balme pass, the trail descends to Les Herbagères in a few hairpin bends. Cross meadowland to reach the outskirts of the forest, from where numerous sharp bends lead down through the trees to the Trient high plateau. The trail heads almost directly north to the little village of Trient with its church, which can be seen from far away. It is worth while casting one’s eyes back over the imposing Trient glacier. (Schweizer Wanderwege)

Natural and cultural heritage

The Tour of Mont Blanc with its exceptional views makes its way along a shelf at around 2,000m in altitude caused by the hollowing action of the glaciers of the Aiguilles Rouges massif on the valley during the last glacial era, when the immense Mont Blanc glacier stretched as far as Lyon. In order to better understand these glacial phenomena, you just have to observe the mythical glaciers pouring out in front of you: the Bossons, Argentière, Tour and Mer de Glace glaciers. The latter used to be called “Glacier des Bois” (Glacier of the Woods) because it descended as far as the hamlet by the same name. But since reaching their apogee in 1850, these glacial tongues have been suffering under global warming, which is made evident by the immense moraines left at the end of glacial corridors such as the Piget escarpment close to the Bois area. The hamlet of Chéserys bears witness to past pastoral activity and on a level with this “mountain” (name given to the pastureland in the Mont Blanc area), there is a spectacular view over the “Aiguilles Rouges marvel”, the Aiguille du Belvédère, which is also a geological curiosity owing to the presence of limestone in its upper part. It is also possible to see the Blanc lake, from which a mountain lake interpretation path leaves to reach the Montets pass. During the descent to the pass via the Remuaz “mountain”, you can also almost see the route taken by the olden-day mountain farmers. At the pass (1,461m), the reception chalet of the Aiguilles Rouges Nature Reserve provides information on the essential role played by such protective institutions; it was in fact the first reception point for the public to focus on raising environmental awareness there. Today, a botanical path is located nearby. The Montets pass is historically a population border: the Chamoniard people are originally from the Arve valley, whereas the people of Vallorcine mostly of Walser descent, a small tribe that came from the current Swiss Valais region in around the XIIIth century. From the pass, the trail follows the old “Chemin des diligences”, an historical path linking Chamonix to Martigny, and then descends again to Vallorcine, “the valley of the bears”. In Vallorcine, the houses are not as big as in Chamonix because the Vallorcin people were less wealthy but also because they built their houses between the avalanche corridors. The church of this market town was, on the other hand, established in a corridor halfway between the hamlets that it separated in order to prevent conflicts. Today, it is therefore isolated in the countryside. The name of Loriaz given to this mountain area derives etymologically from “royal pasture”. The upward trail to the Balme pastureland takes you through great floral diversity that can be explained by the limestone present in the Balme pass (saxifrage, dwarf alder, viviparous knotweed, etc.) and the ongoing pastoralism around the Balme chalets. The pastureland is therefore used by the valley inhabitants for family rambles. At the pass, the border goes between two buildings, a chalet in Switzerland run by French managers and some ruins in France. (Nicolas Aubertin, Gilles Chappaz, Grande Traversée des Alpes)

Trient Valley Trient valley has for a long time served as a connection between Chamonix and Martigny. Initially, tradesmen travelled mainly on foot or on pack animals, sometimes along steep trails. As the connection became ever more important, these old trails were improved and a first tunnel was built. In the middle of last century, a decision was then made to extend the road for postal transport, passing through Trient valley and over the Forclaz pass. The increasing traffic encouraged several pioneers to build a railway connection, which was opened in 1906 and today plays an important role for tourism. (Schweizer Wanderwege)

According to the panel - and confirmation to the refuge of the Col de Balme - it takes 8:50 - 9 pm and not 6:25 to make this step !! A corrected quickly. Furthermore, because the water is not drinkable, the guardian of this very unkind shelter refused to fill my water bottle ... The itinerary "variant" evoked became the normal route between La Flégère and Col des Montets.

Stay at Refuge de Balme.
There are many places with about the same name. Take the one right on the op of the pass, on the border.
The small Refuge de Balme (E55 demi-pension) is exactly at the border. The hut is about 100 years old and is hardly improved since. The old gardiens are suspicous at first, will not open the dorms before 5.30pm, and let you use the poop-hole outside the house until then. But later in the evening the lady gets friendlier and started telling me horrific stories about border patrols caught in avalanches. And about the guest in winter who popped out for a moment to see the Mont Blanc at night, and did not return. Search parties in the next days were unsuccessful. When the snow melted next spring his body appeared just behind the hut!

Before you leave to Switzerland, look behind. Last view on the snowy Mont Blanc!!

mikeb - 2015-07-19

Col de Montets to La Flegere takes 3:30 - 3:45 hours as shown on the signs at Col de Montets, and not the 2:15 hours as in the above. This is important because of the timing for the cable car from La Flegere down to Chamonix

It's hard to get an accommodation during high season in Trient without a reservation.

I was lucky to get a place at the more unknown "La Gardienne". All other accommodations were already fully booked. It's a really convenient place as well as relatively cheap with very a kind host speaking eng/deu/fr.
There's also a small (really small) supermarket in the village.